Improved barrel-head



M. L. THOMPSON.

Head for Barres.

Patented Oct. 22, 1867.

m. l l i l I m @with tetes getint @ff/ige,

MERRITT L. THOMPSON, OF FLEMINGTON, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND JOHN P. RITTENHOUSE, OF. THE SAME Y PLACE.

Letters Patent No. 70,050, dated October 22 1867.

IMPROVED BARREL-HEAD.

TO ALL'4 WHOM IT MAY OONCERN:

Be it known that I, MERRITT L. THOMPSON, of Flemington, in the county of Hunterdon, and State of New Jersey,have invented and made a certain new and useful Improvement in Heads for Barrels, the.; and I do hereby Adeclare the followingto be a full, clear, and exact description of the said invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing making part of this specification, wherein v Y Figure 1 is a plan of said barrel-head.

Figure 2 is a section of the same at the line :c w. i Figure 3 is a section at the line y y, and Figure 4 is a section separately of the blocking-piece in a slightly modified form. Similar marks of reference denote the same parts. IIerctofore it has beenneccssary to loosen the end hoops ofthe barrel or keg in order to take the headout; this `injures the hoops and'alsothe ends of the staves, and the barrel can seldom be used a second time and be as secure as when rst headed up.

The nature of my saiiinvention consists in a,peculiarly-constructed head, that can be removed or replaced.

without loosening the hoops, thereby preventing injury to the barrel and allowing of its being used several times. This improvement isiparticularly adapted to the heads of Hour-barrels, butter-casks, paint-hogs, rite.

In the drawing a represents the harrel-staves, hooped together in any usual manner, b the groove around ythe inside, near the end, for the reception of the head. cfa are'the side segments' of the head, fitted with ribs on their inner edges, shown by dotted lines in iigs..1 andjlyupon which ribs the edges of the middle sections d d of the head r'est. These sections d d do not touch each other, but leave a hole through the head at or near the middle of the barrel, into whichiis inserted the blocking-pieee e. The periphery of the head, when the parts are set together, corresponds to the size of the groove 6. The side segments c e of the h ead are first put into the barrel, then ,the section-s d d are put in, and afterwards the blocking-piece e, which fills the hole in such a manner that the sections cannotI be separated until said blockJing-pieceis removed, after which said head can be removed in the reverse order in which the sections are putin. y The blocking-piece c has side Hang-es 1 1 to prevent its falling into the barrel, and end anges 2 2 to prevent its falling out, said ilanges 2 '2 taking under the edges of the sections c c. In order to remove this blocking-piece there is enoughcnd play allowedto admit of the said blocking-piece being driven endwise to'clear one of' theiianges 2, so that it may be lifted out. To prevent this end motion to the block from any'aceidental cause, I employ a peg, 3, driven in, as seen in figs 1 and3, or else I carry the' upper part of said block along in the form of a ange, 4, and insert a small nail to hold the said blocking-piece in place.

This barrel will be much stronger in the chime than the usual hour-barrel, because it does not require the ends of the staves to he so vmuch bevelled as has heretofore been ldone for facilitating the introduction of the head. In place of a. rib and groove to form thejoint between the edges of the sections, the same may he made bevelled inwardly on the side sections, the Centre sections being correspondingly bevelled, and wider on their outside than on their inside surfaces. i Y

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The blocking-piece @formed as set forth, in combination with the sections c c and d d composing the head, as and 'or the purposes specified.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my signature/this twenty-seventh day of July, 1867.

I A M. L. THOMPSON.

Witnesses:

Guss. IVI. SMITH, Guo. D. WALKER. 

